Wu Qijun, Shangshu of the Ministry of Justice, withdrew from the Zhiyuan Hall, the sky was still dark, and his eyes were still dark blue, with the bitter cold of deep winter. Walk slowly outside the palace.
The East Palace was flooded the night before, and the fire almost reached the Dazheng Palace. Fortunately, the fire was extinguished in time, but the East Palace, which was in good condition, had already been reduced to a charred ruin. The guards tried their best to rescue the prince, but the princess died tragically in the fire. The proposal department ordered to investigate all the way, and some palace people said that the princess died of suicide, and the fire was set by the prince himself.
The matter was not trivial, no one dared to be negligent, and immediately reported to the Emperor of Heaven, there is no such thing as a happy scene after the Spring Festival in this palace, everyone kept silent, for fear of saying a wrong word and causing trouble to the upper body.
Before Wu Qijun left the Zhiyuan Palace, he saw several inner court guards coming this way with the crown prince, and avoided to the side: "My minister Wu Qijun has seen His Highness."
Ye Tianhao's expression was far away, and he couldn't see clearly under the hazy morning curtain, but he seemed to stand still and smiled slightly: "Master Wu, what is your Highness, now I am just a person to be punished by your Ministry of Punishment."
Sweat dripped from Wu Qijun's forehead, and he hurriedly said: "Your Highness speaks seriously, how dare I."
Ye Tianhao laughed, and went straight to the announcement room.
Qing Chen and Sun Shi'an stood beside the Emperor of Heaven silently, they didn't sleep all day and all night, neither of them felt sleepy.
After Wu Qijun went out, the Emperor of Heaven looked gloomy, and looked at the report that reported the fire in the East Palace without saying a word. The prince confessed that he set the fire with his own hands, and blamed himself for the suicide of the princess. It wasn't the first day to serve the Emperor of Heaven. Both of them knew that the Emperor of Heaven was extremely angry at this time, and he must have been heartbroken, so he calmed down.
Although the golden stove was burning brightly, the Western Propaganda Room, which was as warm as spring, was filled with suffocating coldness and dead silence. Until the prince came in and knelt on the ground, the Emperor of Heaven did not raise his head. Tiao Chen got together, nodded and said: "Okay, okay, okay." He even said three good words: "I even learned how to kill and set fire, my good son."
Ye Tianhao kowtowed deeply, took off the white jade crown symbolizing the status of the crown prince, and placed it on the bluestone ground in front of him: "Father, please complete my son and minister."
The Emperor of Heaven looked at the white jade crown coldly: "What can I do for you? Did you drag it out of the Meridian Gate to chop it off after doing such a thing?!"
Ye Tianhao smiled faintly: "Thank you, Father."
"You!" The Heavenly Emperor stood up abruptly, pointed at the prince, trembling with anger, dizzy, and almost fell down.
Qing Chen and Sun Shi'an were taken aback and hurried forward to help: "Your Majesty!"
The two supported the Emperor of Heaven to sit down, Qing Chen knew that he was furious, and persuaded him: "Your Majesty, please calm down and take care of the dragon's body."
Sun Shi'an asked cautiously: "Your Majesty, do you want to send the imperial doctor to see?" The Heavenly Emperor slowed down and shook his head sadly.
Ye Tianhao knelt there, clenched his hands into fists, he couldn't hide his concern for a moment, seeing that the Emperor of Heaven was safe, he relaxed slightly, and regained his indifferent indifference.
The Emperor of Heaven sat on the soft couch with his forehead stroked, and his tone was full of disappointment: "I have put so much painstaking effort into you for so many years, but in return you are like this today!"
Ye Tianhao looked sad: "It's my son's fault. If it weren't for my son as the crown prince, the two imperial brothers Yan Zhao and Yanxuan might not have died. The position of crown prince should have belonged to them."
At that time, Emperor Renzong, the elder brother of the Emperor of Heaven, died of illness. His eldest son Yanzhao was only ten years old, and his second son Yanxuan was still in his infancy. The Empress Dowager is fearful of political chaos because the young master is in charge of the country. Together with Fengyan and Wei Zongping, the auxiliary ministers Li Baodang, the current emperor ascended the throne, and named Ye Yanzhao, the eldest son of Renzong, as the crown prince. But within a few years, Ye Yanzhao committed suicide, Ye Yanxuan died of illness, and the crown prince fell to Ye Tianhao.
The Emperor of Heaven stood up slowly: "What did you say!"
Ye Tianhao kowtowed again: "In the tenth year of Shengwu, Brother Yanzhao quelled the Xifan Qiang rebellion and returned to Beijing, but all the generals under him were repeatedly demoted, and he himself went to the rank of General Guard, so he has no title to be a crown prince." Brother Yanzhao has always been proud and arrogant, how could he endure such humiliation? Brother Yanxuan and his sons are about the same age, and they have always been in good health. In the fifteenth year of Shengwu's autumn feast at the Chengming Hall, he died of a sudden illness after returning home in good condition. There are three more Uncle Emperor..."
"Enough!" He still wanted to say, but the Heavenly Emperor waved his hand and slapped him so hard that he staggered aside.
A streak of bright red blood immediately spilled from the corner of Ye Tianhao's mouth, and the Emperor of Heaven looked at his son kneeling in front of him: "You are serious, it was a waste of my painstaking efforts."
Bright red blood flowed down Ye Tianhao's jade-like face, drips splashed onto the bluestone floor, the corner of his mouth was contemptuous and miserable, and his smile was piercing and shocking: "I thank my father for your painstaking efforts."
The Emperor of Heaven turned pale with anger, and was supported by Sun Shi'an, and angrily shouted: "Get out, you get out!"
Qing Chen and Sun Shi'an looked at each other, and hurriedly stepped forward to help Ye Tianhao: "Your Highness, go back first." Ye Tianhao stared at the old father, bowed deeply three times, got up silently and left here without hesitation .
Qing Chen followed him outside and said in a low voice: "Your Highness and the Emperor are father and son after all, why bother to push each other so much?"
Ye Tianhao turned his head and looked at her: "My father, the person I love, my brother, which one is not a painstaking effort? Maybe they will be fulfilled, and everyone will be happy." After finishing speaking, Gao Yin said: "Other people laugh at me, and I am also crazy. I laugh that others can't see through..." Disi looked up and laughed.
Qing Chen looked at his back indifferently, a long wind blew in front of the porch, and the remaining snow was blown up. Thinking that he was intentionally provoking the Emperor's anger and begging for death, he turned around and told several inner court guards: "Follow and take care of His Royal Highness, remember, if there is a slight difference, you are the only ones to ask."
The foreman of the guards was Xie Jing, who nodded slightly, and led the people to follow Ye Tianhao.
Qing Chen went back to the proclamation room, and seeing that the Emperor's face had improved, he stepped forward and said softly: "Your Majesty, Qing Chen is asking for your pulse, your body is critical."
The Heavenly Emperor's voice was tired and painful: "No need, you draw up an order for me..." After a long pause, he finally continued: "Since the crown prince entered the East Palace, he has violated the virtues of his ancestors, disobeyed my instructions, and committed adultery and evil. , from now on, I will be abolished as a commoner and demoted to Zhuozhou..." Every word and sentence, heartbroken, and at the end, I was crying.
Qing Chen's heart trembled, Zhuozhou, the weather is cold, the mountains are high and the road is far away, I am afraid that he will not be able to go back after this trip: "Your Majesty, think twice..." Sun Shi'an knelt on the ground: "My Majesty, Zhuozhou is a bitter and cold place..."
The Emperor of Heaven interrupted them and said: "My intention has been decided, you don't need to say more, Qingchen draws up an order!"
Qing Chen walked to the case, the pen in his hand seemed to weigh a thousand catties, the yellow silk was dazzling, and the ink was like blood. After finishing writing, he presented it to the Emperor of Heaven, who waved his hand away and said, "Go and announce the decree."
The love between father and son, the righteousness of the monarch and his ministers, all evaporated into nothingness in this will, and disappeared in ashes.
Holding the long-awaited imperial decree, Qing Chen quietly left the Western Propaganda Room. A servant came over and said in a low voice: "Princess, His Royal Highness Seventh Prince and Master Yu from the Ministry of Rites are here, do you want to pass it on?"
Qing Chen thought for a while and said, "Wait a while, if it's not an urgent matter, don't bother the emperor." Ye Tianzhan and Yu Shangshu from the Ministry of Rites had already arrived at the Western Propaganda Room, and gave her a questioning look.
Qing Chen shook his head lightly: "The emperor is not feeling well, if there is something to wait for, then wait a little longer."
Ye Tianzhan nodded, seeing that Qingchen was holding the imperial edict in his hands, and it had been almost two days since the incident in the East Palace, so he knew that there was an order to deal with it. When he raised his eyes, he saw blood stains on the corner of Qing Chen's skirt and robe, and he asked with a hidden worry in his eyes, "Is Father okay?"
Qing Chen said: "The emperor is all right."
Ye Tianzhan gave a slight signal to Yu Shangshu, and Yu Shangshu handed over the report to Qingchen: "Please trouble the princess."
The six memorials have always been handed by Qing Chen, she nodded and took it: "If there are other things, Lord Yu may come back later."
Yu Shangshu said: "Thank you, princess, for your suggestion." He stepped back first, Ye Tianzhan and Qing Chen walked slowly, and asked, "What's wrong with the clothes?"
Qing Chen looked down and knew that it was stained with blood on the ground. He didn't want this to fall into his eyes, and said, "It was accidentally stained."
Seeing that she was fine, Ye Tianzhan nodded, but Qing Chen didn't say what was going on, nor did he ask. Under the morning light, the Zhiyuan Hall was quiet and cold, and the wind was blowing to cool the place. After a while, he said again: "You have been by Father's side these few days, do you know what decision Father has made?"
Qing Chen said: "There is a decree."
Ye Tianzhan said, "I'm not saying the will."
Qing Chen was taken aback for a moment, then came to his senses, and smiled faintly: "Just do what you feel at ease with, and everything will be fine."
Ye Tianzhan's eyebrows twitched, his eyes flicked past Qing Chen's jade face that was as still as still water, and he looked up into the distance.
Far away in the sky, thousands of rays of sunlight seeped faintly, reflecting in his clear eyes, as if rain and dew were pouring down on his head, a brilliant light was drawn in this thick winter day.